Masak Masak Ala Emak

Gingerbread cake with orange icing This rich, treacly gingerbread is addictively good. Try making it as an alternative to a traditional Christmas cake. ( https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/gingerbread_cake_with_69829 )

Sticky ginger puddings This is quick recipes, only take 10 to 30 mins for cooking time .  This ginger pudding has levels - sticky toffee, pistachios, tamarind and a warming kick of whisky.  For this recipe you will need six 175ml/6fl oz metal mini pudding basins or dariole moulds.

Sticky gingerbread cake If you can, wrap and keep this tea time treat for a few days before eating – its stickiness will develop as it matures. this recipe only take less than 30 mins for preparation and 30 mins to 1 hour for cooking time.

Sardines in tortillas with spicy tomato sauce and refried beans Pan de cazon, literally translated as bread with dogfish, is a dish popular in Yucatan. I was surprised to find that the dogfish tasted more like tinned sardines. So I tried making this with a couple of tins of sardines and it was really lovely. Ingredients 2 tbsp  olive oil 1 medium onion, sliced 1 clove garlic, chopped 1 tsp dried epazote or oregano ½ –1 habanero chilli, stem and seeds removed, roughly chopped 600ml/20fl oz tomato passata 250g/9oz sardines in olive oil, drained 250ml/9fl oz corn oil, for deep frying 12 small corn tortillas (about15cm/6in tortillas) salt and freshly ground pepper 1 avocado, stone and skin removed, to serve For the refried beans 600g/1lb 5oz black beans, rinsed 2 medium onions, finely chopped 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 bay leaf ½ tsp dried epazote or oregano 35g/1¼oz...

Vegan pavlovas Vegan meringues are easy to make and require little hands on time. These contain relatively cheap ingredients so you can make them all the time. Each serving provides 163 kcal, 1.5g protein, 13g carbohydrates (of which 12g sugars), 12g fat (of which 10g saturates), 0.7g fibre and trace salt.( By   Matt Pritchard ) Ingredients For the meringues 100ml/3½fl oz liquid from canned chickpeas (aquafaba), chilled ¼ tsp cream of tartar 100g/3½oz caster sugar 1 tbsp lemon juice 1 tsp vanilla bean paste drop of red food colouring (optional) For the topping coconut cream (readymade or refrigerate a 400ml can of full-fat coconut milk overnight, then carefully scoop out the thick, white cream from the top, reserving the coconut water for another time), chilled 3 tbsp agave syrup ½ tsp vanilla bean paste small punnet of strawberries, halved (optional) handful of passion fruit, halved (optional...

Coconut chili chicken This coconut chicken curry recipe is proof that making your own curry from scratch really is easy. ( By   Nigel Slater ) Ingredients 3 plump stalks lemongrass 50g/2oz fresh ginger 2 hot red chillies 2 cloves garlic a bunch coriander 2 limes 2 tbsp ground nut  oil 200g/7oz tomatoes 2 tbsp fish sauce (nam plah) 2 tbsp dark soy sauce 8 chicken thighs 400ml/14oz can coconut milk 8 apricots, halved Method Peel and discard the outer leaves of the lemongrass- they can sometimes be tough. Cut the inner leaves into short lengths and put in the food processor. Peel the ginger, then slice into thin pieces and add to the lemongrass. Chop the chillies, discarding their stems and add to the ginger with the peeled garlic. Roughly chop the stems and half of the leaves of the coriander to add to the food processor, reserving the rest for later. Grate the lime zest into the food...

Haddock parcels and coconut rice The haddock simply cooked with chilli, coriander and lemongrass in this flavoursome, healthy dish, served with coconut rice. This meal is  low calorie  and provides 403 kcal, 34.4g protein, 57.5g carbohydrate (of which 0.4g sugars), 2.2g fat (of which 0.9g saturates), 0.1g fibre and 0.3g salt per portion. Ingredients 4 haddock fillets, about 150g/5½ oz each 4 tbsp chopped fresh coriander 1 red chilli, chopped 1 shallot, thinly sliced 1 lime, sliced, plus extra lime halves to serve 2 lemongrass stalks, 1 roughly chopped and 1 bashed 300g/10½oz basmati rice 2 fresh or dried kaffir lime leaves 50ml/2fl oz reduced-fat coconut milk Method Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. Cut 4 pieces of nonstick baking paper, each 30cm/12in square. Put a haddock fillet in the centre of each piece and arrange some of the coriander, chilli, shallot, lime and chopped lem...